Venice, Italy

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Venice was so beautiful...my pictures don't really even do it justice. I've wondered which of the cities I visited in Italy was my favorite, but that's a tough question. Each city has its own character...qualities that make it so different from the other. Venice was definitely in its own category. A city made of islands, the only motorized transportation permitted are the water taxis and vaporettos, the motorized boats that zip the city's inhabitants and tourists around the island by way of the Grand Canal. Of course, there are the gondolas, used mostly by tourists and by locals for special occasions and weddings. I thought about dropping the €80 to ride around in one for an hour or so...but when I pictured myself, alone in a gondola in Venice, being serenaded by a confused and embarrassed gondolier...well, it was a scene I thought best kept to myself.

On the land portion of the island, the only way to get around is on foot...and you had better have two very capable feet to get from point A to point B. There are over 400 bridges spanning each of the little waterways around the island, some by slope and some by stair. Perhaps the smartest €3 that I spent my entire trip was on a map of Venice. With so many waterways, bridges, corners, etc., you cannot imagine how easy it is to get lost in such a small area. The map saved me numerous times when I ended up in blind alleys or in parts of the city that I couldn't identify. Fortunately, with so many blind corners and recessed doorways, I was able to "disappear" for a minute off the grid of very narrow pathways and reorient myself. Second only to ordering my coffee, I learned Italian for "Excuse me, please. Where is (fill-in-the-blank)?" without having to think about it. Even though I'm describing getting "lost" down dark alleyways, I never felt endangered or fearful. I was on an island, after all. As long as I wasn't underwater, I felt like my momentary misplacement of Michael would work itself out.

The city, itself, was beautiful. There were various piazzas around the city, filled in the evening with parents and children, lovers, and consumers of gelato. The most famous piazza was St. Mark's Square, the home of St. Mark's Basilica, the Doge's Palace, and The Cafe Florian - a restaurant opened in 1720 (...that's a restaurant that is 56 years older than the United States) in St. Mark's Square that is reputed to be the first place in all of Italy to serve the glory known as Coffee. The also have a 5 piece string ensemble playing arias across the square...glorious.

The most astounding place I saw while in Venice was St. Mark's Basilica. It was filled with beautiful artwork, incredible sculptures, and priceless religious pieces...including the bones of St. Mark, the apostle, and various body parts from saints from around the world, called "relics." I'm not sure what it is with Italians or Catholics...but this was only the beginning of what became my personal interest in each of the churches I visited. In each church, I would look for the most unusual or bizarre relic I could find. I took pictures of some, but was mostly forbidden to take pictures out of respect for the sanctity of the "holy items" I was observing. Because St. Mark's is so popular on the tourist circuit, there was a line around the building, down the block, around the corner, and over what seemed like at least 200 of those 400 bridges. Thanks to Rick Steves, I read that large bags were not allowed inside the church...in the event one wished to abscond with the jaw of Lazarus, I suppose. Consequently, I checked a bag in this unmarked location near St. Marks and was given a small card with a number to reclaim my bag. Once I returned to St. Marks, I went directly to the door - to the head of the line - and walked right in by just flashing my numbered card to the doorkeeper. That little trick and the 3 hours it saved me (and no small amount of pleasure at seeing the confused look on the faces of those ill-prepared-line-waiting tourists as I walked past them into the church, hallelujah) was worth the price of admission.

Venice was really a beautiful city and a great place to experience. Later in my journey, I ran into a couple in Rome (actually from Dallas) who had been engaged in Venice just a week earlier. I could totally see that happening. Italy just seems to bring that out in people...at least from what I could tell as an outside observer. My coffee and I, however, had a lovely time together. ☺ On to Florence!